The Comfort of You
by Jessie611
Summary: Chloe is the only one able to give Jack the comfort that he needs.


Chloe O'Brian was sitting at her workstation in CTU, glad that today was almost over. She was locking down her files and closing active protocols and would be heading home within the hour. Luckily for her, tomorrow was her day off and she didn't think she'd ever been so happy to get away from the chaos of the past twenty four hours.

She looked around her and noticed that pretty much everyone else had already gone home. She was left with just the night shift and security guards for company. Not that it was unusual. She was usually the last to leave, wanting to make sure that all agents had returned safely so that she could shut down all communications and go home safe in the knowledge that she'd done her job.

She stood up, carrying a pile of paper files and walked along the corridor to the archive room. She noticed that one of the side room doors was open and moved to secure it, sticking her head around the door to make sure the room was not in use. She was just about to close and lock the door when she saw a slight movement out of the corner of her eye.

She slowly moved into the room and saw the man hunched on the floor in the corner, his shoulders slumped and visibly shaking, his knees pulled up into his chest. If Chloe's day had been difficult then Jack Bauer's had been so much worse. He had fought to save his own skin and that of people he loved. His girlfriend had finally given him an ultimatum that he had to stop or she wouldn't be able to deal with it. Chloe assumed that had been the final straw. She had witnessed the joy in his eyes as he returned to CTU from his day of hell and into the arms of the woman he loved only to discover she didn't want him unless it was on her terms. The joy had quickly turned to a deep sorrow.

And here he was now, the man who saved the world time and time again without anyone to save him. Chloe's heart went out to him, but she turned to leave. She had never been good at dealing with human emotions; couldn't even deal with her own let alone anyone else's. She moved back towards the door silently then stopped.

She looked back at him and realised quickly that she couldn't leave. Whatever else she had done in the time she'd been at CTU, the one thing she couldn't do was leave Jack Bauer to fight his demons alone. She moved towards him and hesitated for a moment, not sure how any words or actions of comfort would be received. She felt awkward – not that that was anything new for her, she was always awkward.

She reached out a hand and touched his shoulder gently. She felt his muscles tense but he didn't look around. Her fingers moved to soothe him as she knelt beside him, hesitant and unsure. When he didn't move away or flinch from her touch she became bold, her hand moving in soothing circles across his back. He moved suddenly then and she almost jumped as his arms snaked out and pulled her towards him.

Chloe had to stop herself from stiffening in his arms as she was dragged unceremoniously onto his lap. His grip was almost vice-like and she realised after a moment that she had stopped breathing. She gulped in some air and reached her arms around his shoulders. As she did so his head fell against her so his face was nuzzling into her neck, she could feel the cool dampness of his tears against her warm skin.

Her hands continued to move in their comforting motion against the taut muscles in his shoulders and back. She found herself gently rocking him as his tears continued to flow, silent but full of pain. She held him for what seemed like hours but was probably only minutes at most. His tears slowly stilled and his breathing settled into a steady rhythm.

Eventually his head lifted from its resting place and his eyes sought hers. Her gaze was drawn to his and she saw the pain that was still evident in his expression. Her heart contracted at the sight of him and her own eyes filled with tears. His face softened as he saw his own pain mirrored in her expression. His hands lifted to her face, his thumbs gently rubbing away the stray tears that had fallen onto her cheeks.

"Chloe" he said softly, his forehead touching hers gently. She felt his warm breath on her face as she realised that his closeness would do nothing to stem the tears that were now flowing freely from her eyes. She tried to pull away from him but he refused to release her, leaning back and looking into her face with an intensity that made her tremble with uncertainty.

She saw his gaze drop to her mouth and her heart jolted in anticipation of his touch, a yearning that had existed for many years finally only a step away from being realised. The touch of his lips against hers was gentle but insistent and she heard her own sigh as a fire ignited between them. Their kiss was driven by a shared loss while coupled with a passion that was borne out of trust that stemmed from the knowledge they were both the same.

Neither one of them noticed the woman in the doorway, her own tears streaming down her face at the sight in front of her. She backed away, pulling the door silently closed as she recognised the truth of what she had failed to give him. She had returned in the hope they could repair what had been lost between them but in reality her return had confronted her with the painful truth of what they could never have. She walked away with a heavy heart that was tinged with hope. Hope that the man she had loved for the past four years had finally found what she had been unable to give him.


End file.
